After a particularly mild and dry winter, the spring without frost or hail, helped the basements to make good water reserves before the arrival of the sun, which was very hot that summer.These conditions allowed optimum fruit growth.The rain fell in late August and was miraculous just before the harvest.This water supply resulted in a perfectly balanced maturity. So, this year again, the 2016 vintage is very qualitative particularly for southern appellations.

Rewards

98 pts Jeb Dunnuck

93 pts Robert Paker - Wine Advocate

93 pts Wine Enthusiast

92-94 pts Vinous - Josh Raynolds

***** Drink Rhône - Jonh Livingstone Learmonth

Gigondas Hommage à Gabriel Meffre

Vintage

2016

Grape Varieties:

98% Grenache2% Syrah

Terroir:

'Hommage à Gabriel Meffre' is produced as a tribute to our founder, a great visionary and emblematic figure of Gigondas and the French winemaking world. Only produced in vintages in which the grapes achieve exceptional balance and concentration, the selected parcels of 60 to 100-year-old Grenache vines are located in the area of "Petit Montmirail" (alt. 200m), on sandy marl of the Oligocène period. This Grenache/Terroir combination is unique within the Gigondas appellation.

Winemaking:

75% of the harvest was vinied with whole bunches. Aged in 1/2 muids barrels (600l), during 19 months.

Manual harvest on September 24th, 2016.

Bottled on April 23rd, 2018.

2 959 bottles, 563 magnums and 6 jéroboams produced.

Tasting notes:

"The 2016 Gigondas Hommage À Gabriel Meffre is sensational stuff and one of the gems in this great, great vintage. Gorgeous black raspberries, cassis, crushed flowers, and pepper all flow to a full-bodied, powerful, yet incredibly seamless and sexy Gigondas that has ultra-fine tannin, no hard edges, and a blockbuster finish. It's a big, rich wine, yet the buzzwords are elegance and purity." Jeb Dunnuck - 26th September 2018

Service & food pairing suggestions:

Serve at 16-18°C and open a few hours before drinking.

Optimum maturity: 2018 through 2030.

Will pair with great gastronomic dishes.

Age of vines & yield:

72 years on average. 30hl.

“I continue to be blown away by the Gigondas Hommage à Gabriel Meffre release, and if you get a chance to taste this beauty, don’t miss it.” Jeb Dunnuck – Robert Parker/The Wine Advocate